Sinking Ship
by scr1be
Summary: Lucinda Malfoy is...different from her family. They've ignored her peculiarities until something happens they simply Cannot ignore. Suddenly she's in a boat with someone she never thought to have anything in common with. Can they save each other from a sinking ship? DISCLAIMER: Everything you recognize belongs to JKR.
1. Chapter 1

Lucinda Malfoy had always been a bit different. Her father, Abraxus Malfoy, and her older brother, Lucius were perfect examples of what a pureblood Malfoy ought to be. They were haughty and self-assured. They were elegant and held themselves to the proper standards of their bloodlines.

Lucinda was...different.

She couldn't care less about how expensive her clothes were. She dressed appropriately because her father demanded that she do so. But she refused to throw out that old sweater of her mothers that had more patches than sweater and was no longer discernible as the color it had started as.

She didn't care about the balls her father insisted they attend to show off their wealth and position. She attended because her father insisted.

She didn't even know how to sneer at someone, nor did she want to. She couldn't see how anyone might be any less than she herself was. They were all people after all.

She couldn't be bothered to look down on anyone with less money or standing. She couldn't understand how someone could be judged by the circumstances of their birth.

She didn't see that being a pureblood had given her any benefits.

In fact, she saw it as a sort of cage.

Because Abraxus Malfoy was strict in his definitions of what a pureblood female should be.

She should be: silent unless spoken to, beautiful enough to show off the wealth of the family and do the jewels draped about her justice, she had to marry well to another pureblood of good standing, and be otherwise invisible unless called upon.

Lucius was encouraged to be loud and seen and do whatever made him most visible and listened to.

Lucinda was ordered to be as much a part of the background, a beautiful decoration, as she could become.

Her father felt that if he had to hear more than two words from his daughter, that she was disgracing him most abominably and needed to be...re-educated.

* * *

But Lucinda thought nothing of this either.

She learned her lessons early on. She developed a mask that showed no emotion or thought and became the china doll her father thought she ought to be.

She kept her opinions to herself and her...differences...out of sight of the circles her family ran in.

Only Lucius had any direct idea of how different his sister was. He was patient with her short comings and tried to coach her to be more the daughter their father wanted.

He hid any deficiencies from their father and diverted the attention of their guests when her mask faltered or her unseemly opinions of equality emerged.

Abraxus was very good at ignoring his daughter completely unless she did something in public to shame him.

* * *

As she grew closer to the age where she would be shipped off to Hogwarts and began to recognize some fleeting independence from her father's ideals, she realized that the more she followed her father's edicts the easier the transition would be.

As it was he only acknowledged her presence to discipline her. So she gave him nothing to discipline her for. She waited quietly in the background for her chance to escape and discover who it was she was hiding.

* * *

Lucinda Malfoy knew she was different from the rest of her family.

She is about to discover just how different she is.


	2. Chapter 2

Lucinda sat in her compartment staring out the window by herself until a young girl and boy opened the door and asked, "Can we sit with you? Everywhere else is full."

Lucinda appraised the pair, the boy was skinny and his long black hair was greasy, his robes were second-hand and showing a patch badly done. The girl was gangly, all elbows and knees with bright red hair and a kind, if hesitant smile.

Lucinda nodded her head and watched as they arranged themselves and their trunks in her compartment.

The girl was clearly a nervous sort, she kept fidgeting and eventually spoke to fill the silence.

"I'm Lily Evans, this is Severus. We're first years." Lucinda nodded in acknowledgement of the information and remained quiet.

The girl, Lily, looked to her friend with a worried expression, slightly hurt as if Lucinda's silence had effected her feelings and undermined her confidence. Severus glared over at her.

"Are you a first year as well or have you been to Hogwarts before?" asked the boy, trying to get her measure.

Lucinda was very quiet as she answered and looked at the floor as she spoke, "This is my first time."

Severus narrowed his eyes, furrowed his brows as he asked another question, "What's your name?" "Lucinda Malfoy."

She looked up when she said this, her chin jutting into the air as her father had taught her. She should be proud of her family name. It was the one thing she could say with pride and without fear of repercussion.

"That explains it." "Explains what?" asked the red head. "She's a Malfoy, a pureblood. I told you how they are about things." "Oh." Lily looked dejectedly down at the floor of the train carriage. Lucinda wanted her to look up again so she might reassure her with a small smile, as was permitted. But Lily was staring fixedly at her shoes. So she looked at the boy instead, that impassive, unreadable mask on.

"You'll be in Slytherin then, won't you?" Lucinda nodded her head.

Lily looked up again but the moment to reassure her had passed. She turned to Severus and asked, "That's where you think you'll go, right?" "I expect so."

Just then two boys opened the compartment and slid inside. "Don't mind us, everywhere else is full."

They didn't wait to be given permission to join the three in the compartment, they just came in and made themselves comfortable by the window across from Lily and Severus. They introduced themselves and then went quiet, staring out the window in contemplative silence.

James Potter and Sirius Black.

Of course, Lucinda knew them both. Their families were older than dirt, just like hers, and the Black family was notorious in their purist beliefs. They were more stern and unforgiving than her own father could ever be. She wasn't likely to speak again for the duration of the ride to Hogwarts.

Sirius and James both looked at her and nodded in vague recognition. Sirius had been present for her brother's tenth birthday party at the manor. He had disappeared half way through and had been discovered in the library. His mother had not been very happy with him. Her father had not been happy it had been she who had found him.

But she had always hated the parties and had disappeared as soon as she thought she could get away with it. Her brother had followed her and found her, talking to Sirius Black. It hadn't been a very good evening for either of them. They hadn't spoken since and had certainly not been given a chance to do so.

* * *

The five of them rode on in silence for a time. Lily and Severus softly debated the various houses. Sirius and James were flicking a chinese football at the window repeatedly.

Lucinda sat very still and tried to fade into the upholstery while maintaining her family's dignity. It was difficult for her. She hadn't always been shy and quiet. She used to run and laugh and play and ask silly questions.

Now she tried very hard to be invisible.

Lily finally turned to include her in the conversation.

"So, do you think you'll like your house?"

Lucinda had never been asked her opinion of anything. No one cared if she liked the things she was surrounded by or the things that were expected of her. That was just the way it was and so Lily's question shocked her into speaking exactly what she thought.

"I'm too odd for Slytherin house."

Sirius Black jerked his head up to look at her. She blushed and looked at the floor, berating herself and expecting to be punished for her audacity as she would be at home.

The blow never came. The admonishment went unsaid.

Lily asked, "Why too odd? Are there no odd Slytherins?" "Pureblooded females live by certain rules and expectations. Lucinda here has been bred to live a certain way. Haven't you?" Sirius was matter-of-fact as he spoke and obviously testing her.

"My father expects a certain standard to be met by both of his children. I only hope I do our family justice." he nodded his head and turned away from her again. Whether she had passed or failed his examination was unclear.

Lily was about to put more questions to her but Severus stopped her with a shake of his head.

"Well Lily, you've got to be in Slytherin." "Why on earth would anyone want to be in Slytherin? I think I'd rather die."

Lucinda was shocked by Sirius's outburst. All the noble house of Black had been sorted into Slytherin. He really didn't have a choice in the matter. But she remembered finding him in the library the night of the ball and asking him why he wasn't enjoying himself with the rest of the guests. He had curtly replied then that he would rather wear a dress and stand on his head than be caught dead at a ball. He always was a little odd. Like she herself. But that wouldn't change the fact that he was a Black and would be sorted into Slytherin. Would it?


	3. Chapter 3

"I think I'd rather die than be in Slytherin."

* * *

"I don't even care. I'm just thrilled to be going to such a wonderful place. I had no idea what was going on until Sev here told me what I was." "So what's it like growing up muggle?" "Normal but like I didn't fit in anywhere. I had friends and things but it felt like they didn't understand me. When weird things would happen around me, it scared people. Mum and Dad didn't know what to do with me. They thought I had a serious temper problem for a while. And then I got my letter."

"That would be so cool!" "Not really. At one point they thought I needed therapy. I was actually scheduled for my first appointment when my letter came. My parents were really worried about me. I'm the first magical person in my family. They thought we were all going crazy. And, of course, the more worried they got the more worried I got and the more things I destroyed on accident. Thank god for Sev. If I hadn't known what I was I would have really thought there was something wrong with me."

"Okay, less cool than I thought. My Mum and Dad are in a long line of purebloods. Whenever my magic went crazy they just flicked a wand and fixed everything. The only thing I ever got away with is stealing a cookie once." "Don't act like you're such a badass. Your mother gave you that cookie." "Shut up, Black."

* * *

Lucinda watched the back-and-forth between her companions and wished that she knew how to join in. Wished it was permissible. But that was not the way a Malfoy should behave.

Boys could do as they pleased. Girls must be silent. Seen and not heard.

* * *

They talked more until the lady with the trolley came by. Lucinda bought herself a snack and watched as Black and Potter devoured sweets like they were starving. Severus and Lily shared something the redhead bought for them.

Eventually they changed into their robes and prepared for their arrival.

* * *

It was everything Lucinda had been dreaming of. The train pulled into the Hogsmeade station and she got off with the other first years. They followed a massive man called Hagrid to the lake where unmanned boats were docked and waiting for them.

She looked at the castle in pure amazement as the boats propelled themselves across the dark waters.

This was going to be her home for the next seven years. The potential was at her fingertips. She could be her own person here. She could do what she liked without worrying about her father reprimanding her.

Within reason of course, because Lucius was still in school and he would be watching her. He would tell their father anything that happened. She would toe the line without stepping over.

She took a deep breath of relief at the prospect. She would be watched but the axe hanging over her head didn't seem so close now. She could choose her friends. She could choose when to study. She could choose what to eat at dinner and how much she was allowed.

* * *

The first years were gathered in the entrance hall in front of a stern-looking woman in a green dress with her hair pulled in a tight bun at the back of her head. She peered down at them out of her square spectacles with a patiently-disapproving look on her face.

When they were all quiet she cleared her throat and announced, "In a moment I will lead you through these doors and you will be sorted into one of four houses: Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, Gryffindor, or Slytherin. While you are here your house will be like your family. Do well and you will earn your house points. Any rule breaking and you will lose points. At the end of the year the house with the most points wins the House Cup." she looked accusingly at the children gathered around her, as if expecting to catch them breaking rules even as they stood there. "Let us begin."

* * *

They followed single-file through the doors to be lined up in front of the entire school. Four house tables full of people stared at them. The professors smiled or frowned or looked anxious, depending on their nature. The Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, seemed to stare straight through each one of them, sending a shiver of anticipation or anxiety down each of their spines.

Lucinda looked at her fellow first years and wondered which would be wearing the green and silver colors of Slytherin with her. Which of these girls would be her roommates? Which would she be living with and learning with? Who here would want to be her friend and allow for her little oddities?

She looked for her brother at the Slytherin table and he gave her an encouraging smile and mouthed "good luck". She choked back her fears and anxieties. She would make friends here. She had nothing to worry about. Her brother was well-liked and her family well-known. She _would_ make friends.

* * *

Professor McGonagle was standing with a long list of names next to a three-legged stool and a ragged hat. She seemed to be waiting for something. And then the hat began to sing.

 _Gather round and listen well_

 _It is my job to sort you all_

 _To let the houses swell_

 _I might think it wrong to split_

 _Potential friends and family_

 _But it is my job to sit_

 _You down where you belong_

 _No matter where that is_

 _Listen closely to my song_

 _And I will give a hint._

 _Some of you are Gryffindors_

 _For you are brave of heart_

 _Your courage has no bounds_

 _This sets Gryffindors apart_

 _Others will be Ravenclaws_

 _You'll learn and grow in smarts_

 _Some are truly Hufflepuffs_

 _Their loyalty is tried and true_

 _The rest of you are Slytherins_

 _Ambitious through and through_

 _Now don't be shy_

 _Come on up_

 _Don't worry I don't mess up_

 _I'll peek inside your head_

 _Your thoughts and heart I'll read_

 _Until I know without a doubt_

 _Which house it is you need_

* * *

Lucius hadn't told her that a ragged hat would dictate her future here at Hogwarts. If he had, she wouldn't have believed him. Not really.

Though he had never been the sort of brother to prank and pick Lucinda would have been sure to think he was pulling something over on her with that.

But there it sits, silent and waiting now that its song is over. A hat will tell them who their friends are going to be for the next seven years.

* * *

Professor McGonagle wasted no time. She began reading from her list and as she called out each name a terrified first year sat on the stool and wore the hat. Some of them were easy to sort and the hat was barely on their head before it was shouting out a house. Others were harder and took some time.

When she called "Black, Sirius" Lucinda barely even paid attention. Of course he would be in Slytherin. But when the hat said nothing and continued in silence for some minutes the hall went silent. The whispers stopped. Suddenly everyone was paying attention, waiting for the hat's decision.

Sirius looked furious and stubborn. It looked like he wanted to rip the hat off his head and stomp on it. He started shaking his head furiously. When he stopped the hat called, almost in exasperation, "Gryffindor!"

He ripped the hat off his head and almost threw it at the Deputy Headmistress before taking off for the Gryffindor table. They were applauding him. The Slytherin table looked mutinous and a little bit disgusted. Sirius was triumphant.

Lucinda was shocked. She had never heard of such a thing. Every Black as far back as they went had been in Slytherin just like the Malfoys. How could he have ended up in Gryffindor?

* * *

She shook her head and tried to pay attention to the next being sorted. It wasn't as interesting as Black's miraculous sorting. The hall was buzzing with talk as the older students gossiped with younger students, telling them why it was so unheard of and wondering what made him so different. Lucinda was wondering that herself.

She had always felt a connection with Sirius Black. They seemed uninterested in their families' politics and the rigid ways of the pureblood class.

But if he was in Gryffindor she couldn't see how that friendship might be explored. Even if he _did_ want to be friends with her. And she couldn't declare that he did.

* * *

She faded in and out, sometimes catching a name or a house, other times watching the enchanted ceiling and the waning moon above her. Eventually it was her turn.

"Malfoy, Lucinda" she snapped back into focus at the sound of her name and tried to remember what a Malfoy was supposed to do in this situation. She was pretty sure she was supposed to stand up straight and walk proudly to the front of the room. But her knees were a little wobbly and she was suddenly a little light headed. She wasn't sure what she was worrying about, she was going to Slytherin and her brother had already saved her a seat next to him and his friends, Crabbe and Mulciber. She wasn't going to be alone at the feast. But all those eyes on her were a little overwhelming. How was she supposed to blend into the background if everyone was watching her?

She was worried she would trip or faint. She was sure she had something on her face.

But she made it to the stool with no mishap and the hat went down over her eyes when it was placed on her head.

* * *

 _Another Malfoy. I have placed you all in Salazar's noble house for generations-carbon copies all of you. But you aren't that, not quite. They've tried, their mark is on you but your spirit has yet to be crushed. You're braver than you know to have come so far and still be free of their designs. You are pure of heart and brave. You want only the opportunity to prove yourself._

 _"GRYFFINDOR!"_

Before she understood what the hat had said about her, before she could contradict it and say she was as she had been bred to be, the hat was calling out her new house and it was not the house she had been expecting. Her eyes went automatically to her brother. He was staring at her in open-mouthed shock. He was shaking his head and looking horror-struck.

Lucinda handed the hat to Professor McGonagle, who gave her an encouraging smile before heading slowly to the applauding Gryffindors. She met Sirius's eyes and he was frowning at her. He didn't know what to make of her placement any more than she did.

Of all the things she had been worrying about: falling on her face in front of everyone, not being very good at lessons, not making any friends-she had _never_ , not _once_ thought to be worried about where she would go. She had always known that Malfoys belong in Slytherin.

It was true that she was not a very good Malfoy. She had always been a little different. But she hadn't thought it would make such a difference. She suddenly had a whole new set of worries.

Lucius would have to write back to their father. Their father would be outraged. What if the kids in Gryffindor didn't trust her because she was a Malfoy?

The house and family rivalries at Hogwarts went back generations. It might be too much for some of them to accept at the word of a hat. She couldn't possibly belong in Gryffindor. She was terrified of what the future might hold.

Why hadn't she thought of this outcome? Why hadn't she thought to ask the hat to place her with her brother?

Because she was the first Malfoy to _ever_ be sorted anywhere but Slytherin.


	4. Chapter 4

Why hadn't she thought of this outcome? Why hadn't she thought to ask the hat to place her with her brother?

Because she was the first Malfoy to _ever_ be sorted anywhere but Slytherin.

* * *

The other first years were sorted in their time. Lucinda wasn't paying attention any more. Her head was spinning and she seemed to be having trouble breathing. She tried to remember that the Sorting Hat knew best. She tried to tell herself that her brother and father would love her just the same.

She couldn't quite bring herself to believe it.

Lucius had looked shocked and outraged. The last time she had looked up at him he was purposefully ignoring her with a look of disgust on his face.

What was she going to do? What _could_ she do? Would Professor Dumbledore let her be sorted again? Maybe the hat would choose the right house if given another opportunity. Surely she had to at least _try_ to live up to her family's name?

But Sirius looked happy to be in Gryffindor. The house of Black was older even than the Malfoys and all of them had gone to Slytherin. Yet he seemed triumphant to be openly declared different. She knew his home life was difficult. Weren't all pureblood families like that? So many rules and expectations were bound to wear you down. Especially when you found it difficult to be what they expect.

And if Lucinda had trouble, she _knew_ that Sirius did. Walburga Black was not known for her patience, after all.

* * *

She came back to the Great Hall and the feast, surprised as she looked up and saw that there were no first years waiting to be sorted. Professor Dumbledore stood at his seat in the center of the Professors' table and spoke,

"On behalf of the faculty I wish to welcome all first years to the beginning of your tenure here and to welcome back our older students, we are looking forward to another year improving your minds. I won't make you wait any longer as I hear the rumbling of empty tummies. Tuck In!"

He sat and food appeared all down the center of every table. Heaping piles of anything you could dream of. All of her favorites were suddenly in front of Lucinda and she gasped in pleasure and dismay.

At home she was allowed only a single serving of anything. She could never have seconds and her father strictly dictated what she ate. After all, Malfoy women were never fat.

As she looked at the food in front of her she wondered if she might, just this once, have her fill. She had grown accustomed to the gnaw of hunger in her eleven years. She had never been starved but she had never been full either.

She looked again to her brother for guidance.

* * *

Lucius was piling food onto his plate with seemingly no regard for how his father might feel about it. But Abraxus Malfoy had never limited his eldest child.

Lucinda looked again at the plethora of food around her. She filled her plate slowly, with shaking hands. She kept an eye on her brother, if he seemed to disapprove she would stop. He never looked up at her. He was concentrating on his food and his friends. They seemed to be arguing about something that disturbed her brother very much. He was intent on the conversation and spared her not a glance.

So she ate.

* * *

Lucinda was still worried about what her brother or the Gryffindors around her might say about how much she was eating and _what_ she was eating. Rolls still warm from the oven, dripping with butter and shepherd's pie with more gravy than anything, roast and carrots and pie for dessert. She had three pieces of cherry pie before her stomach refused to accept another morsel or it would burst.

She had never been so full. The smile on her face was obvious and she couldn't get rid of it, despite her worries about her family and her future here at Hogwarts as a Gryffindor.

* * *

As everyone finished eating the remaining food vanished, leaving sparkling gold dishes clean on the table. Professor Dumbledore stood again and addressed the hall of students.

"Now that our hunger has been sated I do have a few announcements before we begin the year. The Dark Forest is strictly forbidden to all students. No magic is to be performed in the corridors. Curfew is nine o'clock each night. There is a list of banned objects posted in Mr. Filch's office for perusal of the mischievous. And I would like to welcome our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher: Professor Knightly."

There was some half-hearted applause around the room and at the staff table as a blonde man stood and gave a short bow before returning quickly to his seat.

Lucinda studied him. She had been wondering as much as the returning students who would be the new Dark Arts professor. It was widely known that Hogwarts had been unable to keep someone in the position for more than a year for some time. Lucius had abhorred last year's professor and raved about how unfair it was and how inadequate Dumbledore was for not being able to find decent help.

Lucinda was trying to take the measure of Professor Knightly. She had never heard the name before, which meant only that he wasn't in the circle of pureblood families she had spent any time with. She wondered if he had done great deeds or if he had been a scholar, studying the creatures of magic and danger before he came back to the school to teach.

He was handsome she supposed. His hair was golden and set off the hazel sparks in his eyes. He was muscular and tan. He had a fierce, concentrating look on his face like he was trying to think of the best strategy to get out of the situation he found himself in, or simply preparing for the worst.

She wondered what his teaching style would be like. She had already heard what to expect from the other teachers fro Lucius. She knew the potions master was likely to get close with anyone with a powerful family. She knew Professor McGonagle was stern but brilliant. The Divination professor was crazy and fell asleep in class.

She had thought she was prepared for everything Hogwarts might throw at her. But she was not prepared to be the only Gryffindor in her family.


End file.
